Lecture Will Highlight The Lives Of Native American Heroines

Native American heroines and a dance presentation are on the bill this week at the Chicago Public Library Cultural Center.

Georgiana King Dalton, a member of the Oneida tribe, will present a lecture, ``Native American Women Past and Present,`` on the women`s impact from America`s early years to the present.

Among the women she will describe are Sacajawea, who was an interpreter for the Lewis and Clark expedition; and such contemporary figures as Wilma Mankiller, the first to be chief of the Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma; and LaDonna Harris, who is working to bring Native American communities into a coalition.

After the lecture, women organized through the Native American Center will perform. A mother and her two daughters will present a variety of social dances, and Dalton will perform a traditional ``jingle dance.`` Music will be provided by a singer/drummer from a tribe based in Iowa.

Dalton, who was born and raised in Chicago, said her tribe, the Oneida, originated in Canada, but a small portion moved to the Green Bay, Wis., area, where her mother was born. There are 15,000 Native Americans from about 50 tribes in Chicago, more than half of them in the Uptown neighborhood, Dalton said.

The only Native American-run accredited college in the country, the Native American Educational Service, is based in Chicago, she said.

The program will begin at 5:30 p.m. Thursday at 78 E. Washington St. Free. 1-312-346-3278.